This season, Karl Lagerfeld isn't shying to present a new Chanel women : She's grunge, dark and she crossgenderizes !
Far from the traditional "Bon Chic-Bon Genre" style-which is too often showcased by the House-Karl Lagerfeld imposes his style in revisiting Chanel's codes.
It's in a post-apocalyptic background that Karl presented a collection which in my opinion is a great success.Chanel reinvents the grunge in adding to it drops of Elegance in a sobriety background. This show has been placed under the musical sign of an instrumental version of THE CURE, giving the atmosphere to the whole collection.
Man's jacket, denim leggings, biker boots were on stage; few drops of feminity flavored this slightly male-sized collection . We saw this season a collection of clothes which looked damaged by the time : colors were shadowy-which stand us far from the traditional vivid Chanel "Black-and-White" Credo- and fabrics have been chosen amongst the tough ones : Tweed, Tweed and Tweed again ! Superposed, it ruled the whole show.
This fall collection wasn't a show about slightness but a long live materials Manifesto, celebrating an Era in which clothes survive Time and elements (maybe that's the reason why a fumigating volcano has been placed on stage !).
Reaffirming the identity of the House, or presenting a new identity? Well, I believe this show is a call to Chanel's original identity : Mademoiselle Chanel wasn't a bourgeoise, she was a self-made determined woman with a sense of Elegance, a taste for change and a willing to embrace challenges. Then, I think Karl performed this collection in translating Mademoiselle values, reminding us Chanel House identity survives its time and its designers.
Coco Chanel's spirit was heavily floating on this collection. After Sarah Burton for Alexander Mc Queen and John Galliano for Christian Dior, we can consider this fall fashion week season haunted by fashion phantoms who secretly invested catwalks, sharing on stage a Millésime of truly inspired Style motions.
Aside the scenarization of this show, this collection is in phase with grunge fashion reality : When Gothic-Punk movement found its roots in UK streets, fashion movement turned into a universal second-hand phenomenon : punk clothes stores were not places to find brand-new outfits, especially at the early ages of the movement. Then, Karl reminds us the Essentials of fashion : "Go find your clothes in places they already have been worn several times" because "it's a dark time". It's clearly underlined with this shredded chiffon look some outfits have on stage.
Tunics, tabbarts and capes gave a romantic ton to this collection balancing the dark with drops of colored softness. It's definitely not a pure punk collection, it's just a remind of Coco Chanel spirit which is oscillating between the femininity and this PRESUPPOSED masculine Avant-Gardism. It's a balance between the Yin and the Yang the masculine and the feminine.This fall collection isn't a Chanel Bourgeoise collection, it's a show spiriting the Dark side of Chanel with the audacity of Mademoiselle.
Fashion is currently embracing a very important time of its History : some Success-sized designers die, other are dismissed... It drives us to interrogate ourself about the potential for Fashion Houses to survive their designers. Karl clearly put Chanel show in alignment with his own statement when affirming "the world is a dark place". Well, I won't say that his affirmation is genuinely reflecting my personal understanding of the world, but I can definitely claim Chanel created its world, balancing both sides of its Heritage, conjugating the spirit of Mademoiselle with an ability to overcome the past in surviving its designer codes.
Far from the traditional codes of Chanel's femininity, this Fall collection is at the image of the prestigious House which is emblematic of women in "Avant-Garde" with her time and condition. The presence of Stella Tenant on stage is clearly a reflect of a surviving Epoque.
